Fans Get Ready for 'Breaking Bad' Series Finale Tonight

Sunday

Sep 29, 2013 at 12:01 AMSep 29, 2013 at 4:49 PM

Mark Nixon has been looking forward to tonight for the last seven weeks.

AP

Mark Nixon has been looking forward to tonight for the last seven weeks.

Each week, Nixon and his girlfriend go over to a friend's house for dinner. After the meal, they all go to the living room and turn on AMC to watch "Breaking Bad." When the credits roll after each episode, he knows there is more to what he just saw.

"I always try to go back and watch it on that following Monday or Tuesday just to process it because the whole shock of what goes on in the show, I kind of want to go back," Nixon, 34, of Lakeland said. "There are so many references and homages to different influences, movies and past episodes. It's really hard to catch when you're in the moment."

Tonight is a special night for Nixon and other fans around Polk County as "Breaking Bad" airs its series finale at 9 on AMC.

"Breaking Bad," created by Vince Gilligan, began as quite a hit for AMC in 2008. During its five-season run, the show steadily increased viewership, with more than 6.6 million people tuning in to last week's episode — the highest in the show's history — while being a hit with critics. Bryan Cranston won three Primetime Emmy Awards for Lead Actor in a Drama Series, Aaron Paul won two Emmys for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama, Anna Gunn won Best Supporting Actress in a Drama and last week the show won its first Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series.

"Breaking Bad" follows the story of Walter White (Cranston), a high school chemistry teacher diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. With no money to pay for cancer treatments, he teams up with former student Jesse Pinkman (Paul) as they begin to make and distribute crystal methamphetamine. As the story progresses, so do the stakes and Walter rises from small-time cook to meth kingpin of the Southwest.

Jamey DuVall, host of Movie Geeks United, a podcast out of Lakeland exclusively about cinema, is devoting an episode today entirely to "Breaking Bad."

DuVall said he loved the show's writing and believes we're in the golden age of television. He also compared TV shows on air now to movies of the 1970s that focused on anti-heroes.

"I mean Walt is a bad guy, but for some reason we continue to have empathy for him and sometimes we even root for him," said DuVall. "I think since 'The Sopranos,' that's been a trend that we haven't had before."

Fans of the show have shown their love of the show in many ways from Halloween costumes and tattoos to creating Facebook discussion groups and their version of Walt's product (the show uses blue rock candy as a prop).

Sharon Badgerow of Lakeland is another fan of the show who discovered it from recommendations. She and her husband started watching late in the series run and caught up using Netflix. Badgerow can somewhat relate with Walter's motivation and fight with cancer, having battled the disease herself and known others who have as well. She said she understands the desperation a person can get to when battling the disease.

"How, at the end of your life, you start reevaluating your mistakes and try to fix things because you only have so much time left, give it your all," Badgerow said.

When Gilligan created "Breaking Bad," he said he had the idea of seeing a man transform from "Mr. Chips to Scarface." Fans are only hours away from finding out how it all ends, and many people, including Nixon, are expecting an unhappy ending.

"I'll probably go back and start it all over again," Nixon said laughing.